Fender Rhodes and tight arrangements from the great David Matthews – a solo set that works in the same sort of vibe as his bigger backings for 70s artists on the CTI/Kudu label! The group's largeish, but still has a nice open vibe – as Matthews works a lot of care into his charts to give some of the stars plenty of room to shine – especially guitarist Earl Klugh, who works on the record in a group that also include Burt Collins and Joe Sheppley on trumpets, and George Young, David Tofani, and Ronnie Cuber on saxes and flute! Titles include "Funky Turkey", "Spanish Heat", "Gosman's Gazebo", and "Westlake Drive". CD

Features James Blood Ulmer on guitars, Bernie Worrell on Hammond and clavinet, Amina Claudine Myers on Hammond and piano, Bill Laswell on bass, and Joseph Zigaboo Modeliste on drums and percussion. (Rock, Jazz) CD

A record that features all sorts of cool and unusual twists and turns – an obscure set from the Swiss scene of the 70s, and a date that mixes some harder-driving numbers with more open-ended tracks that feature mighty nice work on reeds! The lineup includes alto and soprano from Stefan Schneller, and flute and tenor from Toni Schadler – instruments that are used in different ways, and with different flavors, depending on the tracks – mixed in with electric piano, bass, drums, and some especially nice percussion, which also changes things up from cut to cut. Titles include the groover "Shagalak", plus "Sint Flute", "Transistor", "Basillio", "White Arena", and "L'Auca". LP, Vinyl record album

Great early work from Quincy Jones – 2 ABC big band sessions, back to back on one CD! First up is This Is How I Feel About Jazz – a set that has Jones working in some of his hippest settings of the 50s – scoring longish versions of jazz tunes for groups that include players like Lucky Thompson, Art Farmer, Gene Quill, Charles Mingus, Phil Woods, and Hank Jones. There's a sublime 10 minute version of "Walkin" that kicks off the album with a great soulful groove – plus original tunes "Evening In Paris", "Stockholm Sweetnin", and "Boo's Blues", as well as a version of Cannonball Adderley's "Sermonette". Next up is Go West – a set in which Quincy turns his arranging style to a band filled with West Coast players – getting them to groove a lot more than you'd expect! Players include Herb Geller, Art Pepper, Charlie Mariano, Bill Perkins, and Walter Benton. The tracks are short, with tight solo space, and most of them were written and arranged by West Coasters like Jimmy Giuffre, Lennie Niehaus, and Johnny Mandel. Titles include "Be My Guest", "London Derriere", "Kings Road Blues", "The Oom Is Blues", and "Bright Moon". CD

Titles include "St. Thomas", "Strode Rode", "When Your Lover Has Gone", "Freedom Suite", "Shadow Waltz", and "Solitude" – 21 tracks total. CD

Features music from Bobby Watson, Denis DiBlasio, Mike Tomaro, Leo Potts, Willie Hill, and Dave Sletten. CD

An assortment of collaborative improvisations – Duck Baker on guitar, and a range of top-flight musicians on the variety of different selections – work recorded over the past few decades, in spaces that includes clubs, homes, and studios around the world! Baker has always been a very versatile player – his albums always have such a different feel, it's often hard to say that there's one sort of style that defines his playing. And that versatility really shows up here – as you'll hear Duck in a series of duets with Michael Moore on alto, Mark Dresser on bass, Derek Bailey on guitar, Steve Beresford on piano, John Butcher on tenor, and Roswell Rudd on trombone – plus a trio with Alex Ward on clarinet and Joe Williamson on bass – and a quartet with Ward on clarinet, John Edwards on bass, and Steve Noble on drums. Titles include "Indie Pen Dance", "Duo For 225 Strings", "Pope Slark", "Signing Off", "The Missing Chandler", and "East River Delta Blues". CD

Collects two larger works – the ballet La Nuit Est Une Sorciere and La Colline De Delta, a rhapsody for soprano sax and orchestra. CD

One of the few albums ever as a leader from alto saxophonist Pete Brown – a less-remembered talent of his times, but a key link between the generations of bop and swing! The set was only issued as a 10" LP, but packs the full punch of most longer albums – sublime alto from Brown with a crisp tone firmly in place – sitting somewhere between older bop players and some of the emerging Tristano-ites from the east coast – a vibe that's almost like Charlie Mariano or Dick Johnson in their best younger years, but with a bit more soul too. The group's a hip sextet – with trumpet from Joe Wilder, guitar from Wally Richardson, and piano by Wadde Legge – and the album includes a great version of "The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise", plus the nice originals "Delta Blues" and "Used Blues". CD

One of the few albums ever as a leader from alto saxophonist Pete Brown – a less-remembered talent of his times, but a key link between the generations of bop and swing! The set was only issued as a 10" LP, but packs the full punch of most longer albums – sublime alto from Brown with a crisp tone firmly in place – sitting somewhere between older bop players and some of the emerging Tristano-ites from the east coast – a vibe that's almost like Charlie Mariano or Dick Johnson in their best younger years, but with a bit more soul too. The group's a hip sextet – with trumpet from Joe Wilder, guitar from Wally Richardson, and piano by Wadde Legge – and the album includes a great version of "The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise", plus the nice originals "Delta Blues" and "Used Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

A great counterpart to the rare Stanton Davis Ghetto Mysticism album – and a set that was recorded right around the same time, with a number of previously unreleased tracks! The spiritual energy of that group has been well-loved by collectors for years – and enjoyed by others thanks to a recent reissue – and this sweet batch of rare cuts really augments that rare musical moment, by offering up a further set of completely cosmic grooves! The style is spacey jazz funk with some deeper elements in the mix – all recorded and arranged with an indie vibe that reminds us a lot of the classic Oneness Of Juju albums on Black Fire, but without as much vocals – just a strong focus on the sweet keyboard lines and soaring horn passages. Some tracks are brand new, others are different versions of themes from the Brighter Days album – and titles include "Delta Six/Brighter Days", "Isis Voyage", "Odwalla", "Things Can Not Stop Forever (Al Kent version)", "High Jazz (reprise – alt mix)", "Things Cannot Stop Forever (inst mix)", and "Funky Fried Tofu (alt inst version)". CD

Titles include "Portrait Of Mahalia Jackson", "Bourbon Street Jingling Jollies", "Second Line", "Portrait Of Wellman Bruad", and "Thanks For The Beautiful Land On The Delta". CD

Titles include "Portrait Of Mahalia Jackson", "Bourbon Street Jingling Jollies", "Second Line", "Portrait Of Wellman Bruad", and "Thanks For The Beautiful Land On The Delta". LP, Vinyl record album

A bold new chapter in the career of vibraphonist Stephon Harris – and proof that he's one of the most amazing players of his generation, one who's always growing into new sounds and styles! Despite the "Duke" in the title here, the work isn't a simple homage to the classics of Ellington – and instead, it uses some lesser-known themes by Duke as vehicles for new waves of color, sound, and tone from Harris – scored in the same soulful way as his brilliant work on Grand Unification Theory from a few years back. The style here is hardly Ellington, and is more a shimmering mix of small combo jazz and strings – headed up mostly by Harris' vibes and marimba, but also featuring Steve Turre on trombone, Anne Drummond on flute, Greg Tardy on clarinet, and Xavier Davis on piano. 3 tracks here are from Harris' own The Gardner Meditations – "Memoirs Of A Frozen Summer", "African Tarantella", and "Dancing Enigma" – and Ellington titles include "Thanks For The Beautiful Land On The Delta", "Portrait Of Wellman Braud", "Bourbon Street Jingling Jollies", "Single Petal Of A Rose", and "Sunset & The Mocking Bird". CD

An incredible record from Bobby Hutcherson – easily one of his best of the 80s, and with some great touches that recall his best 70s work! The album title might fool you into thinking that Bobby's working in Charlier Parker territory here – but he's not, and is instead grooving in a mellow and soulful west coast mode – working with a totally great group that includes Ralph Moore on tenor and soprano sax, Buddy Montgomery on piano, Rufus Reid on bass, and Victor Lewis on drums. The whole album's a magical picture of tone, color, and light – but the especially standout track is "Sierra" – a totally killer number that has these arch angles and edges that rival the best sounds heard on Hutcherson's Montara album! Other titles include "On The Delta", "Crusisin The Bird", "Imminent Treasures", and "All Or Nothing At All". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Joe McPhee's strongest early albums – and a real breakthrough from his sound on Nation Time (also issued as part of the Unheard Music Series.) The group here is a trio – with Mike Kull on electric and acoustic piano, and Harold E Smith on percussion – and the lack of a bass player gives the group an incredible sense of freedom, letting them wail away on long tracks with a strong bent for musical and spatial exploration. The two most marked examples of this are "Astral Spirits" and "Delta" – both searching numbers that start with an electric piano/tenor sound that you might have heard on a Joe Henderson album on Milestone from the same time, but which take that sound to unheard of limits, pushing the keys and the sax to full capacity. The album also includes the longer track "Ionization", which is a fiercely jamming number with a slightly straighter bent. CD

A unique little album from Thelonious Monk – an early 60s live date that features a really cooking big band, plus some solo and quartet tracks as well! The bulk of the album's played by the big band – an unusual mix of players that includes Phil Woods on alto, Steve Lacy on soprano sax, Charlie Rouse on tenor, Thad Jones on cornet, Eddie Bert on trombone, and Nick Travis on trumpet – all cutting nicely angular lines under the direction of Monk's piano. The quartet material strips things down to a group with Rouse on tenor, Butch Warren on bass, and Frank Dunlop on drums – and one selection features Monk on solo piano. Titles include "I Mean You", "Oska T", "Four In One", "Darkness On The Delta", "Evidence", and "Played Twice". 2CD set features bonus tracks too – including "Bye Ya", "Misterioso", "Epistrophy", and "Light Blue" – 2 of which are additional quartet numbers. CD

A legendary bit of Latin fusion from the 70s – one of the few albums ever recorded by vibist Bobby Vince Paunetto, and a monster! The session was recorded in New York with a cream-of-the-crop group that includes Tom Harrell, Ronnie Cuber, and Ed Byrne – but the real highlight of the session is Bobby, whose work on vibes, and unique angular way of cutting a groove is simply amazing. The record is a sublime blend of electric and acoustic playing – soaring with the majesty of an underground soul jazz release, but beats with the heart of a smoking Latin combo! The album's incredible all the way through – and tracks include "Spanish Maiden", "Good Bucks", "Delta", "Taz", and "Dragon Breath". (Latin, Jazz) CD

Drummer Chad Taylor is one of our secret heroes in jazz – a player we've loved for years, and who always brings something special to a session when he's a sideman – yet an artist who hardly ever gets to record as a leader in a setting like this! And if you think Chad's great on other people's albums, he's really fantastic here – leading a trio with Neil Podgurski on piano and Brian Settles on saxes – all at a level that's very different than other lineups of this nature! Given Taylor's tremendous talents on the kit, the record is much more drum-forward than others like this – not letting the reeds or piano dominate too much – yet also at a level that's not a bombastic drum session, as Taylor's always a master of subtle, sensitive sounds on the familiar instrument. The quality is hard to describe in words, but comes through instantly on the record – a gem of a set, with titles that include "Delta", "Subterfuge", "Moon Tone Shift", "Julia's Groove", "Concentric", and "The Reel". CD

Drummer Chad Taylor is one of our secret heroes in jazz – a player we've loved for years, and who always brings something special to a session when he's a sideman – yet an artist who hardly ever gets to record as a leader in a setting like this! And if you think Chad's great on other people's albums, he's really fantastic here – leading a trio with Neil Podgurski on piano and Brian Settles on saxes – all at a level that's very different than other lineups of this nature! Given Taylor's tremendous talents on the kit, the record is much more drum-forward than others like this – not letting the reeds or piano dominate too much – yet also at a level that's not a bombastic drum session, as Taylor's always a master of subtle, sensitive sounds on the familiar instrument. The quality is hard to describe in words, but comes through instantly on the record – a gem of a set, with titles that include "Delta", "Subterfuge", "Moon Tone Shift", "Julia's Groove", "Concentric", and "The Reel". CD